Xyrin Empire-Chapter 679: Just Say It

Wuxia, oh Wuxia, recalling it now, there was a time when I too was a normal high school boy with dreams of martial arts.

In elementary school, I admired Yang Guo because he was so good at fighting.

In middle school, I still admired Yang Guo because he was so tragic, yet he still remained a formidable fighter.

In high school, I continued to admire Yang Guo because after his wife disappeared, his left hand became invincible.

A virile man who, instead of finding a new lover after the loss of his beloved, developed an unparalleled left hand—it made me, as a fellow man, respect him greatly... Here, I must thank my classmate Er Pang, who thoroughly corrupted the once pure young boy that I was; without him, I wouldn’t have come up with so many thoughts.

About Yang Guo, readers have much to say—he’s an unmatched hero, with a heart full of righteousness, a tragic man, unchanging in his devotion... Such complex comments make it hard to construct an accurate picture of this man whose life was so full of ups and downs. At the end, I think the most fitting thing Kenser said about Hero Yang after finishing Jin Yong’s complete works was, "Great kidney, great kidney."

...I admit suddenly pulling Yang Guo into the conversation might seem off-topic, but really, looking at the seasoned one-armed hero next to me, I truly have many feelings: How does he manage to play Tetris with just one hand?

"Guo’er, I’ve been thinking, let’s head to the medical center in a couple of days to get your arm reattached," the fair lady dressed in white sitting next to Yang Guo said with concern, "I heard from those Imperial Soldiers that the technique is quite simple, shouldn’t be much trouble."

Lin Xue and I exchanged a glance, both of our faces twisted in dilemma, so I bowed my head and continued to eat.

Echoing in my ears were similar conversations:

"That man in black over there, truly a brave fellow. In Jiangnan, he called out to duel under the ’Sword Light Blood Shed,’ matched in over a hundred bouts from noon till dusk, neither emerging as the clear victor. Alas, it was just short of a stroke of luck—he ran out of Blue Medicine..."

"What I have, honestly speaking, was obtained when I came to Holy Capital with my brother half a year ago. At that time, we were also given a solar charging panel. Alas, my brother and I, in order to not violate the secrecy laws, spent three hours every day running to the peak of Sky Tower to charge it. Only yesterday did we learn from Baidu that you don’t need someone to hold it while charging! Ah, let the past be, at least now the lightness skill between my brother and me is unmatched within the gate..."

"May I ask if this gentleman is the renowned Sword Light Marquis, Chen Yun’an of Chen?"

"Ah, I am indeed Chen Yun’an. The name Sword Light Marquis is more than I deserve. Here in Holy Capital, even if one has a hero’s title, it counts for little. I see you seem like a swordsman from Central Plains, yet you look somewhat unfamiliar. Could it be..."

"Just a rogue swordsman from a minor world. I blundered into Holy Capital a few months ago and somehow ended up with the title of Reviewer. As for the name of swordsman, I hardly deserve it. My name is Ernidaufsky Temyelgan Ganoder von Mutezhu. You can just call me Mutezhu."

"Pfft!!!"

As I casually listened to these heroes and swordsmen from various worlds engage in humorous exchanges and sipped on my fried noodles, I suddenly choked, nearly inhaling the noodles into my trachea, bursting out with a loud "Pfft!"—Dammit, there goes my Cappuccino Old Beijing Fried Noodle meal ruined by that ridiculous name! What kind of bizarre world did this bizarre Mu Tiezhu come from!

"Pfft, pfft." The continuous stifled laughter leaking out made me look up, catching sight of Lin Xue, her face red and neck thick—she hadn’t choked on her trachea, had she?

Seeing Miss Lin looking like she was about to kick the bucket, I hurried over to pat her on the back to help her catch her breath. Although, theoretically, even half a pound of Crane Crown Red poured into her lungs probably wouldn’t choke such a resilient girl, but after all, she was still our girl.

"I’m... cough, cough, I’m fine." Lin Xue struggled to swallow the noodles in her mouth, her facial expressions as vivid as could be, then she looked up at me, "Wood, you might want to check your own look!"

As Miss said this, she pulled a handkerchief from her pocket and began rubbing it all over my face, "A face full of sauce!"

Then, both of their movements froze mid-air, including me massaging the girl’s back and her wiping my face.

A dazed expression covered Lin Xue’s face as a blush slowly surfaced, visibly flustered by the natural ease and intimacy in our gestures.

Damn, when did Miss Xue and I develop such a strong understanding?

"Ah, screw it!" Lin Xue muttered abruptly as if challenging someone, then suddenly stood up, boldly wiping the dirt off my face.

Despite trying to look nonchalant, this unexpectedly innocent silly girl could not hide the blush on her cheeks, clearly, this was her first time acting like a tender girlfriend tending to her careless lover. Up close, seeing her flushed pretty face and slightly evasive bright eyes, I realized for the first time that ’cute’ could indeed describe Miss Lin.

Our little disturbance naturally caught the attention of the nearby tables, but the bustling noise of the restaurant kept it from drawing any more attention. Watching Sword Light Marquis and Ernidaufsky Temyelgan Ganoder von Mutezhu enthusiastically discuss Super Mario, I felt utterly overwhelmed.

This damned carnival, which had recently destroyed my childhood with a play, was now setting its sights on my youth with these bastards, wasn’t it? Give me back my world of chivalric heroes with lightly clad, swift-moving martial artists of the jianghu, you soulless monsters!

After dinner, the night had just begun, and the lazy Bubbles had already shortened the already brief winter dusk by nearly a third, which meant that Shadow City would be full of stars within minutes of seeing the evening glow.

Owing to some unspoken agreement formed at some unknown time, Lin Xue and I found ourselves walking the streets together, wandering the quiet roads.

Neither of us spoke, the slight romantic tension from dinner still causing our innocent Miss Lin some embarrassment, and knowing her tendency to become sharply tongued when shy, I certainly wasn’t about to provoke her further. After spending so much time together, I could somewhat guess her thoughts—a simple girl’s mind: that moment just now had felt so much like a couple.

"Hey, I was thinking..."

We walked in silence for the better half of the way, and though the quiet companionship felt quite heartwarming, I decided to break the silence since we were about to reach the Western Outer Ring. But just then, a faint scent wafted by and a soft body gently leaned against my arm, cutting off the words that had yet to be spoken.

Taken aback by this uncharacteristically gentle gesture from Lin Xue, I wasn’t sure where to put my hands, though I could cheekily claim to be a guy who was no stranger to female company. But Lin Xue, this girl is made of special stuff—who can tell me if it’s okay to handle her by usual means right now?

"Wood, you’re such a blockhead," as I was still baffled whether Lin Xue was being playful or scheming, her voice came from beside me, slightly angry and embarrassed, "A normal guy would embrace his girlfriend at a time like this!"

Could I just outright say that I was debating whether Miss Lin even counted as a normal girl?

Despite such internal sarcasm, I still extended an arm to gently encircle the girl beside me. There was a slight tremor at the touch, the natural tension of a girl being held like this for the first time, but soon, she comfortably leaned in, her muscles relaxing.

It was the first time I realized that this domineering Miss also had soft, slender shoulders—I had always thought she was made of synthetic material.

Just like an ordinary couple, the two of us continued walking closely together, about five meters later.

"Blockhead."

"Hmm?"

"It really feels quite uncomfortable, let’s just walk properly, shall we?"

"Oh."

I take it back; Miss surely is made of some sort of composite material! Even the usually eccentric Qianqian had never pulled anything so odd when she’s with me! Why is she being so stubborn?

With a twisted face, I let go of Miss, who isn’t used to being held while walking. Comfortingly though, she at least knew to slip her hand into mine. "Let’s hold hands; this shouldn’t be too much trouble."

Holding her slightly chilly hand, I felt quite reflective. "Miss, how did we end up like this?"

"If you ask me, who do I ask? You’re a blockhead, and I’m a fool too."

Lin Xue mumbled with an indifferent look on her face, but from the corner of my eye, I still caught her lips curving up slightly, revealing a warm smile.

"To be honest, I always thought you found me annoying," I said, scratching my head.

Lin Xue didn’t speak, but her hand trembled slightly. I noticed her breathing briefly became erratic—it seemed this casual reflective remark had touched her deeply, which was a bit surprising.

"I... I do hate you, Big Man! I’ve hated you incredibly from the very beginning!" The girl next to me started to rant petulantly, but unexpectedly, the next second, she hugged my arm tightly. "Hey, blockhead, you don’t hate me, do you?"

"How could I!" I chuckled, not quite understanding what Lin Xue meant but I truly cherished this girl who, despite her poison tongue, always supported me. Admittedly, she’s best at getting me into all sorts of trouble, and ever since we met, it’s been nothing but bickering and fighting. But thinking about it now, every time she gave me a hard time was just a clumsy little girl trying to get noticed. And no matter how tumultuous she usually was, in critical moments, Lin Xue always cared for me.

In front of everyone else, she was always the well-behaved gal, always maintaining the demeanor of a well-mannered young lady. Only in front of me did she show that almost heartless simplicity and purity.

Polite and distant with everyone else, yet with me, it was endless horseplay without any reservations.

She never had a good word to say, but even her complaints were laced with an unnoticeable gentleness and concern.

Moreover, more than once, she’d followed me on adventures, no matter how dangerous the place. Even though she was the least skilled at fighting as a Prophet, she stubbornly stood on the front lines, just not wanting to be seen as a burden, always masking her motives with firmly foolish excuses.

I admit, when I was with Lin Xue, we were always fighting, mocking, and bantering, but at some point, I’d gotten used to having this girl around who was always "against" me.

Of course, it would be even better if she could be a bit nicer to me in the future—well, not exactly holding sway, but dropping her combativeness by a few percentage points would be nice too!

"That’s great, so we can continue to quarrel in the future, right?" Miss showed a bargaining expression, her seriousness making one sweat.

"Look, you’ve been arguing with me from the start; what exactly did I do to offend you?"

Lin Xue fell silent, and I didn’t know what she was thinking about. After a full two minutes, she suddenly said solemnly, "Blockhead, you should remember, right? When we first met, we were just ordinary friends, but after I gained the Prediction Ability, I started making trouble with you."

I immediately recalled the painful memories of being frequently knocked into the air by Lin Xue.

Damn it! Why does thinking about my past with Lin Xue always bring up such bizarre and frightening things?

"Wood, I once told you that because the energy within you was too strong, it interfered with me, so I couldn’t see your far future, right?"

"Um, you did say that." I had vaguely guessed what Lin Xue was about to say next.

"That was a lie," sure enough, Lin Xue didn’t hesitate to reveal the truth, "I’ve always been able to see, no matter how strong you are, as long as you don’t harbor hostility toward me, I can see. Although it’s true that the stronger the energy, the greater the interference, in fact, that’s only true for enemies. Wood, from the beginning, I could see a lot of things, although due to the vast span only some fragments... but those fragments brought me a lot of information—in the future, I fell for you, hopelessly, even though I knew there were already other girls around you..."

"So, you started being violent toward me?"

I couldn’t help but laugh and cry as I spoke, what kind of logic was Lin Xue using?

"How long had I known you back then?" Lin Xue said unapologetically, "We were just regular friends, and I was dragged into those troubles by you! But suddenly, fate told me: ’In the future, you must fall in love with this man, you must share him with other girls, you are destined to be one of his harem,’ do you know how unfair I felt at the time?!"

I was stunned for a moment, a wry smile appeared on my face, "Don’t tell me you were planning to defy fate then."

I admit, if I were Lin Xue, seeing those future snippets I would definitely also feel extremely unfair. Being destined for a fate, whether good or bad, is uncomfortable for anyone, let alone for a proud miss to accept that she must spend her life with a guy she barely knew. But at the time, Lin Xue’s temper suddenly became irritable because... well, it wasn’t the miss’s fault, it was mine.

"At first, I just wanted to vent," Lin Xue said somewhat sheepishly, "You can’t literally fight fate. And I thought, if I made you hate me, maybe this future could be changed, as the future is never set in stone, but... but how was I to know that you were such an irredeemable good guy! Despite my annoying, irritable, domineering, unreasonable, willful, and rude attitude, you always tolerated and took care of me... By the time I realized it, the prediction had almost come true... Damn do-gooder!"

"Why didn’t you just walk away then?" I asked curiously, while also feeling a bit stirred up: Who would have thought that all this while Lin Xue’s violent behavior was initially just to make me dislike her so that I would distance myself?

"We were in Otherworld at that time, okay!" Lin Xue protested my forgetfulness indignantly, "By the time we got back to Earth, I could no longer bear to leave... pfft! It’s not that I couldn’t bear to leave! It was just that you deceived me, holding a slim hope to see if there was a glint of humanity in you!"

Saying this, Miss Lin revealed her usual proud expression, her face flushed and head tilted upward, looking very self-important.

I often saw Miss Lin show this kind of expression, but today was the first time I realized, this girl’s cute point was right here!

Indeed, the hearts of girls are the most complicated things in the world. Even someone as straightforward as Qianqian could leave me guessing for a long time with just a little gesture, let alone Lin Xue who could practically be singled out from the primates to form her own species. I had never imagined that just a series of rude behaviors could hide such deep feelings. Okay, okay, this thing is really complicated, but there was still one question left: "Miss Xue, one last question: Since our relationship has come to this point, why do you still argue with me every day, cough cough... What’s up with that?"

"It’s a habit!" Miss answered haughtily, not feeling a bit psychologically burdened.

I just knew it!

"Hey, if Wood, you really hate it, actually..." Lin Xue suddenly looked nervous and extremely troubled, as if not arguing with me would require a huge resolution, but I was interrupted by my long sigh: "Sigh, I’m used to it too..."

A Lin Xue who isn’t tsundere is not the real Lin Xue, as said in the Bible!

"That’s true," the girl showed a satisfied expression, as proud as ever, "Thinking about it now, I’m still very angry!"

I looked at her bewildered: It’s just seeing the future of us being together, was it necessary to be this angry all the way up to now?

Then Lin Xue nearly knocked me over with one sentence: "You jerk! The first scene was you knocking me down!"

Ding dang, that was your own fault, okay! (To be continued. If you enjoyed this work, you are welcome to visit qidian.com to cast your recommendation and monthly votes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)

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